This invention relates to means for preventing unwarranted interference with a wheel of a parked motor vehicle as well as preventing unwarranted movement of the vehicle. More particularly, it is directed to a device which can be easily mounted and locked upon a wheel of a parked motor vehicle by its driver. The device when so mounted prevents application by others of a boot to the wheel as well as rotation of the wheel and, accordingly, prevents unauthorized movement or towing of the vehicle.
It is a common occurrence today for an individual to park his vehicle, and to return some time later to find a wheel has been interfered with or that the vehicle is gone. It may have been towed away or a boot may have been applied to it by public servants for violation of a parking regulation; or it may have been stolen by vandals.
The conventional boot is an appliance customarily locked onto a wheel of a motor vehicle by public servants because of its being in violation of a parking regulation. The appliance engages over the wheel's tire and covers its lug nuts, so that the owner cannot upon returning to his vehicle replace the wheel with a spare and drive the vehicle away. To later redeem his vehicle, the owner is usually required to pay a substantial and objectionable penalty.
A general object of this invention is to provide a device, that is mountable to a wheel of a motor vehicle by its driver at the time of his parking the vehicle, as a guard against such occurrences, and which will reasonably assure him that he will not only find his vehicle where parked upon his return to it but will also find it with its wheels undisturbed so that he may drive it away.
A further object of this invention is to provide a device which can be locked onto a wheel of a motor vehicle being parked by its driver and will prevent the subsequent application by others of a boot to the wheel.
Another object of the invention is to provide a device which can be locked onto a wheel of a motor vehicle being parked by its driver, and which device has a radially extending arm that is subject to abutment with the roadway so as to prevent rotation of the wheel and movement of the vehicle.
A desirable feature of the device embodying the invention lies in its simple and uncomplicated structure, whereby it may quickly and without difficulty be applied to a wheel of a motor vehicle by male or female. Further, it is not cumbersome and, when not in use, may be stored in the trunk of a vehicle.
The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will appear more fully hereinafter from a consideration of the accompanying description which follows, taken together with the accompanying drawing wherein an embodiment of the invention is illustrated. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawing is for purposes of illustration and description, and it is not to be construed as defining the limits of the invention.